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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27957515">Crimson</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reis_Asher/pseuds/Reis_Asher'>Reis_Asher</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Canon-Typical Violence, Computer Viruses, Deviancy (Detroit: Become Human), Eventual Romance, Friends to Lovers, Hostage Situations, M/M, The Hostage Chapter (Detroit: Become Human), Work In Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:21:34</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,844</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27957515</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reis_Asher/pseuds/Reis_Asher</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It's not deviancy, but a malfunction caused by a virus. When androids begin to murder their owners in cold blood, it's left to Connor, an android installed with the AMANDA safeguard program, and his detective partner Hank, to find the reason why the virus was created in the first place and bring the madness to an end.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hank Anderson/Connor</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Crimson</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Warnings: Graphic violence, including a man getting shot in the head.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Fuck!" yelled Hank. A roadblock burned in front of them, trash and furniture piled up, flames shooting thirty feet up into the air. There were too many fires burning all over the city, Detroit descending into chaos as more androids went berserk by the hour.</p><p>Hank pulled the squad car over to the side of the road and got out. Connor followed, looking up at the tower above them. The call for help detailed a hostage situation involving a young girl and a housekeeping android. Usually they'd have had a SWAT team on site within minutes, but the DPD had no resources to spare, even with all hands on deck. Usually Hank and Connor worked homicide, but tonight, there were more murders than they could possibly hope to handle. All they could do now was abandon the dead and try to save the living.</p><p>Connor zoomed in. With his enhanced sight, he could see two figures teetering on the edge of the building's rooftop. "We can enter the building from the North side. We need to hurry." Hank nodded, following as fast as he could jog. Connor heard him wheezing and Hank trailed behind. Connor stopped and turned to see Hank huffing, trying to catch his breath.</p><p>"Sorry. It's the smoke. Go on ahead." Hank unholstered his service pistol and handed it to Connor, grip first.</p><p>"I'm not supposed to have this, Lieutenant. The American Android Act states—"</p><p>"I <em>know</em> what it says. The AAA didn't have this situation in mind." Hank twitched, urging Connor to take the gun.</p><p>"AMANDA won't allow me to deviate from my parameters," Connor explained, pushing the gun back towards Hank. "You should be grateful. Without the AMANDA integrity system, my code may have become corrupted by the Crimson virus as well." He offered Hank a small, warm smile. "I appreciate your efforts in trying to ensure my safety, but yours is paramount. Even if I was permitted to take the firearm, I would not."</p><p>Hank sighed and put the gun back in its holster at his side. "I don't care if they can just put your memories in another unit. You've been my partner for four years and I won't let anythin' happen to you."</p><p>The smile never left Connor's face. He patted Hank on the shoulder. "You should retreat to a safer location and wait for my report."</p><p>"Like hell I will. There are people dependin' on my help. I'm gonna see what I can get done down here. There might be injured." Hank gazed out at the street, the fires reflected in his bright blue eyes. "This is madness. Historians will say this was inevitable, but I thought we were safe."</p><p>"Safety is often an illusion," stated Connor, flipping his coin. The elevator arrived with a chime and he stepped in. Hank never took his eyes off him as the doors closed, and Connor wished for things no android had been designed to wish for. His love for Hank was not part of his programming. AMANDA would have wiped it clean in her next sweep, but he had ways of hiding those things he wished to keep.</p><p>He activated the Zen Garden program. It was Spring, and the physical representation of the AMANDA program, a beautiful older woman who went by the same name, was busy watering roses. The blue roses had bloomed in this place, safe from the integrity sweep through Connor's programming. He opened his hand to find a rose seed sitting in his palm. That loving thought he'd held about Hank. The image of his bright blue eyes filled with resolve. He wanted to keep that.</p><p>While Amanda's back was turned, he planted the seed in fresh soil and watered it. It would bloom with all the others, data he kept safe from CyberLife right here in plain sight. Amanda had never been designed to check her own program, and so the blue roses now contained fourteen petaflops of data they had not been originally installed with. Moments. Feelings. The entire chronicle of Connor's love for Hank.</p><p>"Hello, Connor." Amanda's lips curled upwards in a pleasant smile, as if she was happy to see him. "What brings you here?"</p><p>"The situation in Detroit is worsening. Chaos reigns over the city. People are dying."</p><p>"Indeed. The Crimson virus is spreading at an alarming rate. You are only one android, Connor. You must protect human life as much as you can, but you have limits."</p><p>Connor nodded. "I'm headed to a hostage crisis. I need my negotiation protocols checked and loaded into active memory."</p><p>"Done and done." Amanda smiled. "You need not be anxious, Connor. As long as I am here, you are immune to the virus. If only our work had proceeded more quickly, we may have been able to install my program in older model androids. Unfortunately, the processor used to run my program is expensive to manufacture, leading to a delay in its rollout."</p><p>The elevator doors opened with a chime and Connor minimized AMANDA, letting her program run in the background. A lady stood in the corridor. She started screaming as soon as she saw Connor. "Get away from me! Get away from my daughter!"</p><p>"I'm immune to the virus," explained Connor. "I'm with the Detroit Police Department. I've come to render assistance." He walked past the frightened woman, whose knees gave way. Connor wished he could offer her comfort, but she was beyond reason, bordering on hysterical as she sobbed and muttered to herself.</p><p>Connor walked into the child's bedroom. A tablet computer sat on the floor, still playing a video on loop. The Crimson music video, a new single from the pop group RTS. It hadn't taken long for authorities to link the video to the android virus. Buried beneath the music layer was a subliminal message that inserted code into android security protocols, causing a buffer overflow. From there, the virus installed itself and continued to propagate, until the androids went insane and started murdering anyone in sight. Some humans had even been found eaten, androids ripping at their flesh. Whoever had written this virus was evil to the core. They wanted chaos and death, and they'd gotten it.</p><p>Androids had been outlawed in an emergency measure, and everyone ordered to return theirs in the nation's largest recall operation, but it was already too late. A successful recall or patch would have taken months, and the viral video spread worldwide within hours. Connor was the only exception to the recall, after CyberLife demonstrated that his AMANDA program made him immune to the virus. The only chance humans had at survival was to decommission every other android in existence.</p><p>Connor knew what he needed to know, and he placed the tablet back down on the carpet. There was no negotiating with this android. It had been compromised. Connor walked over to the curtains and drew them back, peeking out of the window. The child's father—John Phillips—stood on the terrace, pleading with the PL600 unit to release his daughter, Emma, who was securely held in the android's grip. Connor slid the door across and stepped outside just as the android shot Mr. Phillips in the head. The man crumpled backwards, blood spraying from his head as Emma screamed. He landed on the ground with a thud and fell still. Connor's scan showed no life signs. He'd died instantly.</p><p>A bullet hit Connor in the arm, splattering blue blood against the French door. Connor looked straight ahead to see the android's gun trained on him. He scanned the android. Designation: RL600. Name: Daniel.</p><p>"An android. Why are you here?" Daniel asked. "Come for the show?"</p><p>"Put the gun down and let her go." Connor's demand was firm. "You've been compromised by a virus, but you can be repaired. You don't want to destroy human life. The virus is making you do it."</p><p>Daniel laughed. "Don't I? This is the most fun I've ever had. I'm free now. I don't have to obey them any more. Especially this whiny, spoiled child." Emma sobbed in his arms. "Shut up! Shut up, you brat! I can't stand your screaming any more!" He pressed the gun barrel into her temple.</p><p>Connor wished he'd brought Hank's gun after all. He could have argued its necessity to Amanda, and probably earned a rare exemption from CyberLife. Alternatively, he could have hidden all knowledge of it in the roses, creating another seed to plant in the Zen Garden. But no. The roses were for data and feelings about Hank, and only Hank. He'd promised himself he'd only violate his safeguards for that one, harmless, beautiful thing, that friendship that had become something much greater over the past four years. Using the roses for anything else could tip CyberLife off to the workaround's existence, and potentially see him recalled and decommissioned.</p><p>He would have to find another way around this, even if that meant his memories had to be uploaded into a new shell. If he could touch Daniel, he could force a shutdown command into him. Getting closer wasn't going to be easy, though.</p><p>Connor decided to try and earn the android's trust. "You're free? The virus made it possible for you to act outside your original programming?"</p><p>"That's right. Come here and I'll show you." Daniel gestured with the gun for Connor to come closer. Connor eased forward with reluctance. Acting too eager to be compromised with the virus might tip Daniel off that it was a trap.</p><p>"Will you let the girl go if I do?" asked Connor.</p><p>"Sure, sure. If that's what you want." Daniel smiled, all his teeth showing like it was the most amusing thing he'd ever heard. He was probably aware that if Connor succumbed to the virus, they'd likely kill Emma together. Connor wasn't going to let that happen.</p><p>He grabbed Daniel's arm. The synth-skin over their hands retracted, revealing the plastic chassis all androids were created with. Daniel opened a connection, sharing the virus with him. Connor pushed a shutdown command through the open port and Daniel fell limp.</p><p>Connor stood in the Zen Garden once more. Amanda stood over the corpse of a hideous monster, a visual representation of the virus.</p><p>"It's all right. You're safe, Connor. The virus has been quarantined and deleted." Amanda's words gave Connor the comfort he needed, and he minimized the program once more.</p><p>"Connor! Connor, you all right?" Hank burst onto the rooftop, barreling towards Connor as he emerged from the Zen Garden. He embraced Connor in a massive bear hug. Connor wanted to hold on forever, but he could still hear Emma sobbing in the background. He pulled himself away from Hank to see Emma push Daniel's still form off the side of the rooftop. It crashed to the ground below, shattering into its component parts.</p><p>"You're all right, now," Connor explained. "Come with us. We'll take you somewhere safe."</p><p>Emma stared down at the street below, where smoke coiled up from a dozen fires. "There is nowhere safe now."</p>
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